Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 18 (IANS) Kerala chief minister V.S. Achuthanandan Tuesday assured the Kerala assembly that the state government would eradicate illegal hiring of workers by firms in the Middle East by streamlining the recruitment process.
“Roots-Norka, a company floated by the Kerala government’s department of Non-Resident Keralites Affairs (Norka) has got a licence to streamline the recruitment of Keralite labourers for work in Middle Eastern countries. We also have the state-owned Overseas Development and Employment Promotional Consultants Limited (ODEPC),” said Achuthanandan.
“We have also begun talks with all Indian Embassies in the Middle East to see that any new recruitment should be made through the state-owned agencies. State to state recruitment drive is what we envisage and our talks are beginning to yield results,” added Achuthanandan.
Achuthanandan, who also handles the Non-Resident Keralites portfolio, said his government was coordinating with the central government and Indian embassies in Middle Eastern countries to ease the condition of Keralite labourers.
He said that a separate cell would be formed in Kerala police to handle all cases registered against recruitment agencies accused of cheating people.
According to studies every year, approximately 100,000 people from Kerala leave the state to take up jobs in the Middle East and the hiring process is currently serviced by recruiting agencies that charge hefty fees.